How to reduce your SPLA reporting

09Jul

It’s easier than you think. ( and no, I am not saying you should be out of compliant). The goal of this blog is to educate and help the service provider community with their licensing decisions. Keep in mind that I do this as a hobby. I also try not to solicit, as that can be frustrating to the reader.

That being said, I do know the reseller channel well, I also know the agreement better than most lawyers. If you are looking to potentially reduce your spend from a reporting perspective, reduce compliance risk, or just simply want to chat about a licensing scenario that can be unnerving, let me know. Send me a message on LinkedIn or shoot over an email – blaforge@splalicensing.com

So how do you reduce your spend? That’s a tough question without a quick answer. I would have to review your report to understand exactly how you can potentially reduce costs. Nonetheless, I’ll give her a try. Here’s my top 3 ways service providers can reduce their licensing costs –

1. Run multiple instances of SQL on the same VM. A little blurb in the SPUR states “For each virtual OSE for which you have assigned the required number of licenses….you have the right to run any number of instances of the software in that virtual OSE” (page 23 of the SPUR for your boredom). Keep in mind, there’s a difference between running an “instance” and running a VM.

2. License the Core Infrastructure Suite (CIS) to run Windows and System Center Servers. If you are reporting System Center and Windows separately….STOP! System Center needs Windows. In other words, you have to report Windows regardless; might as well pay less.

3. Do not report Windows Standard….report Windows Datacenter. You have the option of running unlimited VM’s with Datacenter edition. If you are reporting Windows Standard, that means you are not virtualized. Get virtualized.

One more for good measure…

4. SAL for SA – I still don’t understand why service providers do not report this SKU. It’s less expensive, your customer can still deploy on premise and in your cloud, and you will be unique. (I’ve only seen it reported once).

There are many more ways to reduce spend. (even outside of simply licensing/virtualizing, etc.) There’s too many scenarios to review on a blog post. How about this trade off – If I can reduce your spend, you owe me a beer at a hosting conference. (joke for the record). If I can’t, at least you know your reporting correctly.